Are your high heels ever TRULY comfortable?

Posted on Dec 14, 2011 - filed under Christian Louboutin

Christian Louboutin Highness Pumps, $1075 via Net-a-Porter

I got into an interesting conversation with a group of female friends yesterday – are heels ever really, truly comfortable? For the overwhelming majority of women, I don’t think high heels ever are. Sure, most of us might be able to endure a couple of hours at a party, and a lot of us might assure our friends that our heels are great, but the women who actually feel that way are few and far between. I’ve only ever known one such woman in person; everyone else, after a few cocktails, is willing to admit that heels are actually totally heinous in a lot of ways. But they’re just so pretty!

Louboutins are often singled out in my group of fashion industry friends for being singularly uncomfortable, and Christian Louboutin himself has publicly admitted that he cares not about whether or not his customers’ feet hurt. Most of his customers don’t care either; for a lot of women, the pain is worth it in pursuit of the perfect shoe, at least for a special evening or occasional treat.

Still, though, I wish we could dispense with this bit of fashion mythology. Heels aren’t comfortable! We wear them anyway! It’s ok to admit it, ladies. You’re not any less of a trooper for saying it, and it doesn’t prove anything other than the fact that you haven’t irrevocably damaged the nerves in your feet or permanently shortened your calf muscles. On the other hand, if you’re one of those extremely rare women who think nothing of living your entire life in five inch heels, color me impressed. If nothing else, I’m in awe of the genetic jackpot that you hit in order to have feet and legs that will put up with those kinds of angles.

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Jen

very true indeed! I find some platform heels are managable, but comfort surely is spelled differently. Never got why it is so hard to admit though… must be a strange code between women, we do tend to assure each other of obvious lies from time to time (“That super-short haircut looks amazing on you!” etc).
Veronica

I have a couple of pair of heels that are comfortable enough for quite a few hours as long as I don’t walk around to much. It’s the walking around that’s the killer.

… and no, walking in heels isn’t comfortable. How can it possibly be? I still love em though.
Kat

Of course they’re not! It is curious, though, why we won’t admit that our feet are killing us when they’re clad in 4/5in shoes. I guess part of it is not wanting to admit that we’re, errrrr, fashion-conscious (or vain would be a harsher word) to admit that we’re putting up with discomfort and pinched toes and aching ankles for the sake of looking good. Or that we’re, errrrr, impractical (alternative word: shallow) enough to pay top dollar for things that actually hurt us.

But, man. Heels just make everything look better.Ugggh.

http://dontaskmetosmile.wordpress.com
Lauren

I think when most women describe a pair of heels as being “comfortable,” it is in comparison to other heels, not your slippers. I have heels that I can manage through my entire 9hr work day (with a few breaks here and there), the key is all in the platform. I truly hope this trend doesn’t totally die out. It can add hours to your comfort tolerance level. There are some shoe labels that are in fact, more comfy than others. If you’re looking for inexpensive options, I recommend Nine West, Calvin Klein, Michael Kors and Steve Madden. I can usually handle these at work.
Sam

Hello Everyone,

My name is Sam, and I hail from Canada. My Fiancee was in the shoe business, and having to wear new shoes every month almost killed her feet!

So, as a Development Engineer by day, I built her a pair of Custom Shoe Stretchers….exact duplicates of her feet.

They worked so well on her heels, that spent a year developing a way to make it work for anyone!

Please take a look, and let me have some feedback?

thank you,

Sam
HeavenonHeels.ca
19yearslater

Heels are definitely not comfortable. I only wear thick heels and wedges for all day, and still my feet are more achy at the end of a day in those than in flat shoes.
Catherine

SO TRUE! The worst part is when you see women walking down the street in 5 inch heels pigeon toeing or stepping gingerly because they are in so much pain. I have no problem admitting when my feet are killing me, but then again I usually have a pair of flats stashed in my purse!

Not sure if you have heard of Shuforia, a new high fashion start up. They’re using digital imaging, 3D foot scans to make high heels made to each woman’s exact biometrics! Pretty neat stuff. The result is a custom designer pair of shoes with no pressure, pinching, sliding, or pain! I recently went through the scanning process and got my first pair of shoes from them. Honest to God, when I have them on I can’t believe I’m wearing high heels! They haven’t publicly launched yet, but they have a websites that explain their quest for comfortable designer heels- shuforia.com and shuforia.net .
JenV

As someone said a few comments ago, they are confortable, for a couple of hours. But, in my personal opinion, nothing makes me feel as powerful as wearing my best pair so, the pain is a little bit worth it.
Kym

These past few years I’ve really been trying to get into heels after years of living in flats. The truth is, I remember well my teen years when I not only wore heel, I walked home from school in them. And I also remember those first steps out of bed in the morning – ouch, ouch, ouch. Now that I have conquered blisters (band-aid makes a great product that I keep in my purse for this, it’s wax that you rub on your feel where you feel friction), I’m more determined to wear heels a couple times a week, if only for a few hours. As you can tell from the information I’m providing that I do indeed find heels painful. But I’ve recently become much more comfortable in 3.5 heels – so much so that they are a breeze. To celebrate I thought I’d wear my 5in Prada’s today. Ouch. Ouch..Ouch
FallonLatrece

I have to say heels aren’t the most comfortable. There are some that are better than others for comfort, Steve Madden, and Guess, but even those depend on style. I’ve heard Jessica Simpson shoes are notorious for hurting but her styles are cute. I have been on 5in kick for a while, following the trend, but after a few hrs I’m done.
Diane

There are heels that don’t hurt! The right size is important and so is the design and quality.
Three and a half inch heels with no platform should be easy if they fit right. if you are in shape and in practice, five inch heels and a one and a half inch platform should be about the same as the three and a half inch heels.
Don’t buy them only because they are hot if you need to wear them for more than a couple of hours.
About being in shape. Your calf muscles need to be able to be shortened and then bounce back. the muscle in the front of your leg needs to be able to be stretched for long periods of time if you are walking around in heels. Stretch your muscles and practice.
i am writing this while wearing five inch platforms that I have had on since 8:30AM. They are an inexpensive pair of peeps from DSW with a thicker heel.
I do love the way platforms cradle and support my foot. thin soles are definitley are more work
Sandy

I really do not think there is anyone that can say that 5 inch heels are anything near comfortable. Yes, they are so beautiful that I cannot resist. One thing about Christian Louboutin, the red sole makes things even worse. The red sole is so slick that it makes walking on tile/wood floors even more of a challenge. If you purchase good quality shoes and look for a bottom that is not slick like the CL bottoms it helps a lot. (I have several pairs of CL shoes, so it still does not stop me)
Debbie

This is the reason why I refuse to buy another pair of cls. no matter how cute the shoes, theres nothing cute when you walk around, face squinted as if you are hiro nakamura trying to channel yourself out of this world. Kind of pisses me off that he admits to that, because although people will still buy the shoes, why not reward your devoted fans by attempting to design with comfort in mind?

Are your high heels ever TRULY comfortable?

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